Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Playa del Carmen Cost of Living Comparison Between Sandakan, Sabah and Playa del Carmen

🙂 Solo nomad: Sandakan, Sabah is 36.2% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 33.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Sandakan, Sabah is 13.6% cheaper than Playa del Carmen without rent, and 42.5% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.31 MYR 9.73

$11.99 MX$227

-80.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.93 MYR 79.8

$42.47 MX$803

-55.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.85 MYR 20.43

$10.47 MX$198

-53.68%

Cappuccino

$2.71 MYR 11.41

$3.6 MX$68.2

-24.72%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.66 MYR 2.78

$1.44 MX$27.16

-54.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 MYR 0.96

$0.89 MX$16.79

-74.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MYR 9.9

$3.09 MX$58.5

-23.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.55 MYR 14.98

$4.58 MX$86.6

-22.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 MYR 7.02

$1.38 MX$26.04

20.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 MYR 5.1

$1.85 MX$34.9

-34.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.16 MYR 4.87

$1.57 MX$29.68

-26.11%

Eggs

$2.85 MYR 12.01

$2.55 MX$48.3

11.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.97 MYR 63.1

$8.61 MX$163

73.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.56 MYR 15.01

$8.54 MX$161

-58.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.19 MYR 30.3

$10.98 MX$208

-34.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 MYR 11.18

$2.72 MX$51.4

-2.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 MYR 4.93

$1.51 MX$28.57

-22.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.16 MYR 13.32

$1.88 MX$35.63

68.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 MYR 8.21

$2.19 MX$41.42

-10.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 MYR 5.17

$1.87 MX$35.3

-34.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 MYR 5.36

$2.19 MX$41.37

-42.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 MYR 4.54

$1.07 MX$20.23

0.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.97

$1.09 MX$20.64

-56.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.2 MYR 17.71

$3.96 MX$74.9

6.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.92 MYR 79.8

$8.86 MX$167

113.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 MYR 8.14

$1.72 MX$32.53

12.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 MYR 6.79

$2.61 MX$49.37

-38.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.74 MYR 3.13

$0.52 MX$9.74

42.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.71 MYR 49.36

$26.59 MX$503

-55.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.17 MYR 4.92

$3.24 MX$61.2

-63.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 MYR 4.14

$2.38 MX$44.94

-58.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.75 MYR 24.27

$3.11 MX$58.7

84.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.46 MYR 1.93

$1.31 MX$24.85

-64.89%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$29.3K MYR 123.7K

$30.3K MX$573K

-3.19%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$27.2K MYR 114.6K

$24K MX$453.6K

13.22%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$46.98 MYR 198

$84.2 MX$1,592

-44.23%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$3.64 MYR 15.33

$22.14 MX$419

-83.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.77 MYR 100

$30.14 MX$570

-21.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.2 MYR 153

$52 MX$983

-30.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.79 MYR 24.4

$18.72 MX$354

-69.07%

Cinema Ticket

$2.75 MYR 11.6

$5.07 MX$95.9

-45.76%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$95.7 MYR 403

$200 MX$3,787

-52.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,548 MYR 19.2K

$5,333 MX$100.8K

-14.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 MYR 247

$35.74 MX$676

63.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.19 MYR 97.8

$39.8 MX$753

-41.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71 MYR 300

$79 MX$1,493

-10.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.5 MYR 390

$88.4 MX$1,671

4.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$392 MYR 1,654

$965 MX$18.3K

-59.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$265 MYR 1,120

$474 MX$8,968

-44.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$644 MYR 2,714

$1,653 MX$31.2K

-61.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$471 MYR 1,986

$1,202 MX$22.7K

-60.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,722 MYR 7,261

$3,081 MX$58.3K

-44.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,151 MYR 4,852

$7,529 MX$142.3K

-84.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$703 MYR 2,965

$792 MX$15K

-11.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.42

-73.73%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Sandakan, Sabah: October 29, 2025

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 28, 2025

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